“They have this amazing energy, it’s like a lightning bolt,” observed Nancy Pilcher, the editor-in-chief of Vogue Australia in 2022 of Baz Luhrmann and his wife Catherine Martin. That vitality has sustained their romance from their early days together, through college in Australia to Hollywood and back. Catherine has been important in Baz’s films – from Strictly Ballroom to Romeo + Juliet to Elvis – having that unique look, feel, and experience that has come to characterise Luhrmann’s overall output.
While Luhrmann’s work as the director has earned much of the acclaim, Catherine – or CM, as he calls her- has gotten the gold. Catherine has won many Oscars, while her husband has yet to take home a statue. As the pair prepares for another trip to the Biggest Night In Hollywood, here’s what you need to know about her.
Catherine Martin Is A Designer
Catherine was born in New South Wales, Australia, a suburb of Sydney. She recalled being the “nerdy youngster” who “would ask my parents to take me to the Victoria and Albert Museum and browse through the costume area over and over again,” as she said to Vogue in 2015. My Australian grandmother was a devout Presbyterian, and every so often, the ladies of the church would conduct a historical fashion parade wearing clothes of questionable age and origin, and I thought it was the most amazing thing in the world. The first step is a deep appreciation for fashion and the magic that garments can provide.
She attended the Sydney College of the Arts, where she studied visual arts. She attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art, where she met her future husband, Baz Luhrmann, and East Sydney Technical College.
When Did Baz Luhrmann Get Married?
The wedding between Catherine and Baz took place on January 26, 1997. In 2022, Baz and his wife celebrated 25 years of marriage. He posted a vintage photo that looks to be their wedding day. Happy 25th anniversary to the most interesting woman in the world! To infinity and beyond, CM. It’s also your birthday, by the way!
What Does Catherine Martin Design?
Baz’s first feature film as a filmmaker, Strictly Ballroom, brought the couple together before their wedding. While having served as a production designer on several of Baz’s early films, Catherine now focuses mostly on costume design.
“I see things in photos, and I always have,” Luhrmann told Vogue Australia in 2022. I get a concept, do a number of collages, and then CM and I jump into these philosophical arguments, which lead to the study. The level of thought is so high and pervasive that we almost become investigators.
‘I am a serial collaborator,’ he went on. I realised that the biggest thrill of my life as a youngster, growing up in that seclusion, was to see all these people come and go in the petrol station. We’ve established creative partnerships over the period of 35 years. To me, there is no divide between the two; in fact, they must mutually inspire one another.
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